Why Michael Flynn’s Lawyers And Prosecutors Don’t Understand Each Other

Retired Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn moved to withdraw his guilty plea in federal court last Tuesday, a stunning development only two weeks before he was due to be sentenced on Jan. 28, 2020. The judge has since reset the sentencing for the end of February.

This move comes after the government filed a new sentencing memo in which it withdrew its prior recommendation that Flynn receive probation and accused him of reneging on his agreement to cooperate in the prosecution of his former business partner. In response, Flynn’s attorneys argued the government had thereby breached its obligations to Flynn under his plea agreement. They asserted Flynn had been truthful and accused the prosecutors of wanting Flynn to lie.

This dispute between the prosecution and the defendant is genuine and passionate and reflects their completely divergent views of the relevant facts. The dispute centers around whether Flynn knowingly made false statements in filings under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) about whether he and his partner, Bijan Rafiekian, had acted as agents for Turkey in performing certain work. Flynn did not plead guilty to that offense, but it was included as “relevant conduct” in the Statement of Offense that was part of his plea agreement, meaning the court can consider it in imposing Flynn’s sentence.

The backdrop to this dispute is that Covington and Burling, a prominent law firm, had represented Flynn in preparing and submitting the FARA filings that allegedly contained the false statements.

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